1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to cutting boards formed from transparent plastics material, and more particularly to a novel and improved transparent cutting board having an embossed cutting surface and a smooth back surface bearing a printed design which is viewable through the cutting surface to facilitate trimming operations.
2. Prior Art
Cutting boards are known which have smooth cutting surfaces provided with decorative and/or functional printed designs. A problem with cutting boards having smooth cutting surfaces is that they do nothing to camouflage scratches formed as cutting tools move across their cutting surfaces. Still another problem is that the continuous and smooth nature of their cutting surfaces provides a constant, noticeable drag or resistance to the movement of cutting tools across their cutting surfaces.
Cutting boards which have roughened cutting surfaces are also known. Roughened cutting surfaces have the advantage of camouflaging scratches and nicks, whereby the boards retain a good appearance through prolonged use. Still another advantage stemming from the use of roughened cutting surfaces is that the relieved character of the surfaces poses lesser resistance to the movement of cutting tools. If 20 or 30 percent of the cutting surface along a path of tool movement is kept out of contact with a cutting tool by virtue of the relieved character of a cutting surface, it follows that the surface will impose a correspondingly lesser drag or resistance to tool movement.
A problem with cutting boards having roughened cutting surfaces is that they are not easily provided with decorative and/or functional designs of the type which can facilitate trimming operations. Attempts made to provide such design elements as guidelines and indicia on roughened cutting surfaces result in wavy, distorted design elements which have less than the desired pleasing appearance and which are difficult to use as trimming guides.
Cutting boards formed from transparent plastics material having roughened cutting surfaces have been proposed for home use. To the best of applicant's knowledge, none of these boards have been provided with functional designs which are viewable through their roughened cutting surfaces to facilitate cutting operations.
In the framing of photographic prints, diplomas, and the like, it is customary to trim a mat board to provide an outer, rectangular shape with dimensions appropriate for use with a preformed picture frame, and to provide a rectangular hole in central portions of the mat board with dimensions suitable to border selected parts of a photograph or diploma. The trimming operations required to form these mat boards are commonly conducted on an opaque cutting board having a substantially smooth cutting surface. Design elements such as guidelines and indicia are provided on the cutting surface itself to facilitate trimming operations. Cutting boards of this type are usually formed from wood and may have their design elements burned into or otherwise recessed in the cutting surface to preserve their integrity during prolonged use. These cutting boards are relatively expensive, heavy, and awkward to store. Their cutting surfaces have the previously described drawbacks of resisting cutting tool movement and readily displaying scratches and nicks formed as cutting tools move over their cutting surfaces.